This invention relates to folding knives, and more particularly to multi-blade folding knives having locking means automatically movable to prevent movement of each blade away from its fully open position until the lock is manually released.
Folding knives, having one or more blades or other implements pivotally movable about a transverse pin between open and closed positions, have been provided with locking means for securely holding the blade in one or both positions. The lock must be released, of course, by manual movement of some element on the knife in order to move the blade from the position in which it is locked to the other position. Means for locking the blade in the fully open position are provided for safety purposes to reduce the chances of injury to the user by unintended movement of the blade toward the closed position while in use.
A single blade folding knife with lock-open feature is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,240,201, and other locking knives developed over the past hundred-odd years are shown in other art cited or discussed therein. In general, such knives include a push button at some position on the handle to unlock the mechanism holding the blade in the fully open position; since the button is normally fully exposed, there remains the possibility of inadvertent unlocking of the blade and consequent undesired movement toward the closed position.
Other knives have been proposed with mechanism for individually locking each of a plurality of blades in the open position with release means in the rear longitudinal surface of the handle. In such knives, a portion of the locking member which engages a notch in the blade tang, or a spring member in contact therewith, is accessible in a groove extending transversely across the back of the handle and may be manually pressed to release the lock. In some multi-blade knives two blades are pivoted at opposite ends of the handle, in which case the grooves for the release mechanisms of the blades are also positioned at longitudinally spaced positions along the handle. In other knives the blades are pivotally movable about a single pin at one end of the handle with the release mechanism for both blades positioned side-by-side in a single groove extending transversely across the back of the handle. This creates a problem due to the close, side-by-side positioning of the releasing members making individual manipulation thereof difficult.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a multi-blade folding knife wherein all blades are pivoted on a single pin and having blade lock-open members which are quickly and easily releasable, yet thoroughly safe.
Another object is to provide a folding knife including a pair of blades individually pivotable about a pin at one end of the handle with locking members for each blade and release means having manually engageable portions accessible in grooves which are both laterally and longitudinally spaced along the back of the handle.
A further object is to provide a multi-blade folding knife with lock-open feature having a pair of uniquely configured and arranged beam springs for releasably holding locking members in engagement with the blades to lock them in the fully open position until manually released.
Other objects will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.